Foal Nutrition is often neglected due to the belief that the mare will adequately feed her foal, and any supplemental feed needed is available to the foal in the mare’s grain and hay bins. However, the digestive system of the foal is immature at birth and needs proper nutrition combined with time to mature.

Horses are hind-gut fermenters, meaning that they have a larger colon to accommodate the forages in their diet. Where humans are unable to break these feedstuffs down, horses have a population of microbes that live and grow in the hindgut so that they can eat hay and grass. Microbes break forages down into available nutrients. Microbes also produce volatile fatty acids (VFA’s) which are short chain fatty acids. VFA’s are an available source of energy (30-70% of total digestible energy needs) for the horse. This helps explain why the mature horse does not need a lot of fat in the diet.

Foals do not have a functional hindgut at birth; they are primed with the appropriate digestive enzymes for milk based diets. As they age, it is through the provision of carefully formulated diets that foals will start to gain a healthy population of microbes in their hindgut. It is also critical to ensure that foals are growing at a steady rate. Inconsistent levels of energy encourage growth spurts which can be challenging for bone development. Accelerated rates of growth have been directly associated with developmental orthopaedic diseases.

Grains are used very efficiently in the young foal. It has been recorded that grains in foals is used efficiently; 1kg of grain can equal up to 3kg of gain. It is at this point in the young foal’s life that hay is not a necessary part of their diet though it can be offered. While grain can be easily supplied to a foal it is often taken for granted that the milk portion of the diet, undoubtedly the most important to the neonatal foal, is looked after by the mare. It is critical to assess the mare’s ability to provide adequate milk for a foal. A foal needs to eat often, and over the course of a day should consume up to 10% of their body weight in milk. This can increase to 20% of body weight as they grow. If the mare is an athlete, often their milk volume is reduced to maintain stores needed for racing, jumping etc… If the mare is not well, milk volume will also decrease as their body stores deplete .

Mare’s will produce milk over any other metabolic function and may cause more problems for the mare than the foal. If milk replacer is needed, then the caretaker needs to be available for feedings every couple of hours to ensure small amounts of milk are fed to the foal – this avoids stomach upset. Milk replacer and milk pellets can achieve healthy growth and development in the foal through consistent nutrition.
 

Objective

The objective of this trial was to work with foal handlers to gather further information on the growth and development of foals fed Grober milk based pellets as the introductory diet for the foal.

Experimental Approach

All foals had access to mare’s feed during the trial and foals born later in spring also had access to pasture. Each group consisted of 4 foals weighed at birth and every 3 weeks thereafter. The feeding schedule for FoalGro milk pellets is outlined in Table 1.

Results

Growth of foals was higher in those receiving steady intakes of FoalGro milk pellets supplementing mare’s milk. Even though some foals had access to mare’s dry feed, it can be hypothesized that foal’s mimicked mare behaviour by reaching in their bucket but did not always consume the feed. 

Foals receiving FoalGro milk pellets gained an average of 1.1kg/day and foals receiving only mare’s milk gained an average of 874g/day.

Conclusion

Grober FoalGro Milk Pellet helped foals steadily attain greater body weights. The combination of a milk based pellet along with its extruded grain component is an excellent diet to meet the unique nutritional needs of foals.

Foal milk replacers closely match that of mares milk and in some cases where mares milk is of questionable quality it will surpass it.

• It is important to consider a milk replacer made with 100% milk sources as this would be consistent and more readily digestible by the foal.
• Milk replacers are formulated to provide the optimal balance between energy, protein and fat requirements with the addition of minerals and vitamins for the foal.
• These optimal rations contribute to the health, development and immune status of the foal.

The thought of giving a healthy looking foal a jump start to life with a few days of quality milk replacer should not be dismissed. Foals with inadequate energy and nutrition will have the potential for decreased growth, poor health and the inability to overcome stress and illness.

The first few weeks of a foal’s life are critical, and the importance of optimizing growth and immune functions are important for growth and development of the newborn foal. Subsequently providing foal milk replacer to newborn foals will give them the added energy and nutrition they need. Foals are born without fat stores and their energy stores will rapidly deplete if not provided with enough energy to meet their needs. Of course in the perfect world foals rely totally on their mother’s milk which is fine as long as foals are consuming 5 to 10% of their body weight in milk on the first days of life and increasing to 20 % of their body weight in milk based on age. Energy shortage in foals may consequently lead to health disorders and delayed development.

In addition to giving the foal a good head start other areas where milk replacer would be of benefit would include:

• Helping a mare out who is sick and may not able to provide all the milk the foal requires. Furthermore by providing the foal with milk replacer supplementation will allow the mom to not be worn down by nursing and having the foal use up the sick mare’s energy stores that she requires to recover.
• Mares with inadequate milk or have been tested to have poor quality milk based on many factors such as age, illness, and nutritional status while pregnant. Foals would positively benefit from supplementation with milk replacer to correct milk deficiencies from the mare.
• Giving sick and convalescing foals extra energy to fight illness and provide them with a consistent fortified source of fat, protein and fibre.
• Maiden mares- unsure of nutritional profile of mare’s milk- using milk replacer to ‘top up’ the nutrition offered to the foal.

In addition to the above mentioned reasons for supplementing with a high quality milk replacer, there of course is the reason of the orphan foal that will require milk.

Of course nurse mares may provide milk but supplementation with milk replacer will guarantee a consistent quality of nutrients for the foal to optimize development.

If no nurse mares are used and the foal is hand reared do not be discouraged. “Foals fed milk replacer only, had caught up to mare nursed foals by four months of age and normal growth rates of foals occur when milk replacer and good quality feeds are fed concurrently.” (Can Vet Journal Volume 34, Aug. 1993.) Additionally, milk replacer offers a nutritional profile that is consistent- the profile of the milk from a nurse mare is dependent on the stage of lactation.
Feeds to feed concurrently with milk replacers include foal milk pellets which are an excellent starting ration then moving to a high quality foal ration.

As with any feeding program results of the above mentioned supplementation of milk replacer will vary depending on management environment, genetic and health differences.

• Please consult your veterinarian for assistance and remember with the time and energy you spend on developing your foal it is important to get it right from the start.
• Providing for a foal doesn’t end at foaling time it is only the beginning, and milk replacer is an excellent way of supplementing and giving that foal the healthy start it deserves.

Robert Fera
Equine Specialist
(519) 239-9282
rfera@grober.com

Set the alarm clock, use a log book and stick to a schedule. We keep track of her weight versus the foals raised by their dams and she is gaining on par.

She was integrated into the herd along with her “granny” at 3 weeks of age, and other than running full tilt when she sees me with her green bucket, she is very much the normal foal!!”

My orphan, Trivalli DF (known around the barn as Sherman) thrived on Foal-Gro, and now at 3 years of age has been started under saddle and looks to have a wonderful future with his new owner ahead of him.

Penny Nicol, owner/operator of Highland Wilderness Tours located in Bancroft, Ontario, is an equine lover and entrepreneur who fed her last group of foals on Grober Foal-Gro Milk Pellet.

According to Penny the Grober Foal-Gro Milk Pellet has made a great impact on her newborn foals and also on her business.

“The milk pellet was easy to teach them to eat and they were eating it quite early (three weeks after birth) because they liked the flavor.”

“They don’t hesitate to eat – when the pails are out, the noses are in the bucket, so it’s readily taken in, which eases the mind.”

“100% of the foals took to the feed very easily, there were NO negative responses to it.”

Penny and her husband run their business just outside of Algonquin Park, where they offer horseback riding all year long plus an assortment of activities such as hay and sleigh rides, guided snowmobile tours, ice fishing, snow shoeing, and skiing to name a few.

As you can imagine, they are very busy keeping things running.

A major concern for Penny is early weaning. For Penny and her business it’s important to get the mares back in service as soon as possible without compromising the foals health.

Thanks to Grober Foal-Gro Milk Pellet weaning this year was smooth and effortless.

“This pellet was long overdue – an exceptionally easy way to give the foals the nutrition they need for early weaning.

Early weaning is an issue everywhere because a horse is lost for the summer if the babies are left on [the mare] for four months – can’t put a value on having a mare back in service on time.

Two months wean date gave the foals the six weeks they needed with the mares – and the pellet/grain weaning ration gave them a very definite boost while being weaned early – obviously a good time frame because the mares milk was declining in value.”

“I definitely saw an improvement in body condition after one week weaned and because they were familiar with the pellet ahead of time they were weaned with far less stress (it was like a comfortable friend to them when all they wanted to do was nurse).”

“The babies definitely look better AFTER weaning than they did prior (they were weaned at between 6 and 8 weeks) probably because Mares milk declined in value and more nutrition in the grain/pellet mix.

Given with grain, the pellet eases your mind – there is a lot of guilt associated with weaning early and you can feel happy they are getting a milk replacement.”

For Penny the Grober Foal-Gro Milk Pellet is not only convenient due to its ease in feeding and storing, but the pellet is attributed to great looking foals that are nutritionally sound and mares that are back in service early.

These young foal’s are fed Grober Foal-Gro Milk Pellet. This shot was taken when they were 2 ¾ months old.

For more information about Penny and Highland Wilderness Tours please visit http://www.ridethewilderness.com , where you can view more photos just the one above.

Deerpath’s Mare and Foal Care services provide critical assistance and knowledge. Their high risk and special needs mare/foal care is achieved by working closely with their veterinarians and through years of experience and expertise.

Proper individual handling, nutrition and preventive health care are essential to foal development. Deerpath also specializes in on-farm consultation to set up mare and foal programs.

Deerpath is owned and operated by stallion manager Robert Fera and his wife Monica. They have used our newest product FoalGro Milk Replacer & FoalGro Milk Pellets and are very pleased with the results.

“Thank you for the opportunity to show you Deerpath and let you know how important Grober milk replacer and pellets have helped and how we are now recommending them to others who call about sick or orphan foals.

We believe that taking care of animals is a team effort and you can’t do it unless you have good animal husbandry skills, a passion for the work and sound animal nutrition.”

www.deerpathequine.com

Best Regards

Robert Fera

After the first day, the foal’s gut begins to develop enough for milk, whereby milk proteins are the most absorbable and nutritious food that can be provided. Like all newborns, they need to be fed small amounts often to avoid stomach upset while providing enough energy for their rapid growth. They absolutely need sufficient milk; their intake of milk starts at 10% of their body weight (day 1) and increases to 25% of their body weight (day 10). If the mare is struggling to fulfill all of their needs, a substitute is critical.At this early stage in life foals undergo rapid bone development, so it is necessary to offer them a ration that is rich in calcium and phosphorus as well as copper and zinc. Calcium and phosphorus are the minerals that lead to strength in bones; copper and zinc are involved in the regulation of calcium and phosphorus metabolism. If the foal is deficient in energy or minerals once weaned from milk the foal will undergo a period of compensatory growth that could lead to bone deformities (developmental orthopedic diseases – DOD’s).

When it comes to foal rations everything is based on energy. The more energy they take in the more nutrients they have to digest, absorb and grow. However, too much energy and they will grow too fast for their internal organs and bones to keep up, which can also lead to DOD’s. This is why a mare’s ration is not optimal for the foal. It is important to remember that the nutritional needs of the foal are completely separate from the mare. A ration based on milk and grain needs to be fed to ensure that the foal is getting enough energy to grow and develop at their own pace.

It will not be long before the energetic foal needs more than just milk. As the foal grows, mare’s milk changes composition as a natural way to wean her foal. The National Research Council (1989) published that mare’s milk protein content drops by 33% from the first week of lactation to the ninth week of lactation. A drop of 23% in fat within mare’s milk was reported throughout this same time period. Schryver et al, 1986 reported that normal mares meet foals’ needs for about two months. This is when a grain supplement, milk based for optimal digestion is best and must be offered. They do not need hay at this point. Nursing foals need milk and grain, hay may be introduced for them to sniff, play with and munch on, but it will not be a significant source of energy. Their gut is not fully developed enough to break down the hay and turn it into energy; leave that for the mare.

When balancing the foal ration with milk and grain it becomes imperative to ensure that it has all of the necessary nutrients foals need. They need protein to build muscle mass, they need it to build a strong immune system and they need it as fuel for their muscles. If there are not enough carbohydrates or fat in the diet then they will use protein for energy. They will also struggle to grow if they are in this situation – this would be like putting your foal on the Atkins diet! The building blocks for protein are amino acids. If there is a limiting amino acid then all of the protein requirements cannot be met and growth will be inhibited.

For foals, the limiting amino acid is lysine, which can be found in milk ingredients. General rule of thumb is if lysine requirements are met, protein requirements are met. Foals need fat. It is an important energy source that can be stored and allow them to gain weight, and it also helps with the absorption of some vitamins and minerals. As the foal’s gut develops, their hindgut will produce volatile fatty acids from eating hay. In the hindgut, hay is broken down and fermented by healthy bugs, which produces volatile fatty acids. Volatile fatty acids are an excellent energy source for the horse. Vitamin and mineral needs can be met through milk. These micro-ingredients are essential for developing eyes, to keep cells healthy, coat shiny, bones strong and for overall vitality. Because of rapid growth at this stage they require higher amounts of minerals than at any other time in their lives.

Milk and milk replacer is the perfect food for the young foal – utilization of milk proteins at close to 100%. Milk proteins have many functional properties that allow for the foal to remain healthy. These proteins will improve immune function, act as a antimicrobial agent, help absorb vitamins and minerals and provide enough energy to get that newborn foal onto their feet. When milk needs exceed the availability, supplemental grain is necessary. If the grain also contains milk proteins then that high level of digestibility can be maintained for optimal growth and development in the foal.

Let’s help that busy mare by remembering that foals are demanding newborns that need constant care and attention to get them off to a great start! The key to providing balanced nutrition to your foal is to remember “FOALS”,
F eed them often
O rthapedic diseases are preventable with good nutrition
A lways feed balanced foal rations
L ysine is a limiting amino acid when meeting protein requirements
S upplement is important for foals drinking milk

- Kathleen Shore M.Sc. ( Animal Nutrition )